Groundwater level down by 15 metres in Kandahar

KANDAHAR CITY (Pajhwok): The groundwater level has gone down by 15 meters as a result of illegal digging of deep wells in southern Kandahar province, local officials said on Tuesday.

Mohammad Nader Kakar, water supply and canalsation director, told Pajhwok Afghan News water supply had been affected in the past one decade as a result of unlawful drilling and digging of deep wells.

He said the groundwater level had declined by 15 metres and most of the wells in Kandahar City had dried up, causing serious problems. If water was not saved and illegal drilling not stopped, people would face serious problems, he warned.

Kakar added his department had devised a plan to spread awareness among the people about securing water and get permission for drilling. “We would no longer allow anyone to dig up wells near water supply schemes.”

Agriculture and Livestock Director Syed Hafizullah Saeedi endorsed the Kakar’s view, saying that 95 percent of karez wells had gone dry due to the deep digging.

He said people -- without permission and without any assessment -- dug up deep wells in districts, where most of karez systems had dried up, damaging crops.

Saeedi urged the people to dig up the wells professionally and not to waste the precious resource. If every single person saved one litre, three million liters of water could be saved a daily, he estimated.

Arghandab Canalization Director Eng. Sher Mohammad Attaee also believed digging of deep wells had lead to an acute shortage of water in districts.

Arghandab’s Delhi Dam irrigated agricultural lands in seven districts of the province while the rest of farms and orchards were watered by the karez systems.

However, karez wells have gone dry because of illegitimate drilling, according to the official, who vowed to curb the practice. All drill machines would be registered with the agriculture department.

Niaz Mohammad, a grower of the Emirate village, the digging of deep wells by residents of another nearby area had pushed down the groundwater in their locality and they could not irrigate their farms.

He added the problem was shared with local officials, who promised to resolve it as soon as possible.

Abdullah Khan, an inhabitant of Maiwand district, said with the introduction of the solar energy system, the digging of deep wells had increased in the province. Farmers are irrigating their farms, using the solar power system.

The provincial police chief recently started assisting poor farmers with irrigating their lands through solar power and deep wells in Daman and Dand districts. Local officials say the wells are being dug up in a way that the groundwater level and reserves are not harmed.

Some days back, the Indian consul-general told the Kandahar governor that his country wanted to establish 300 deep wells equipped with solar power supply for the people and farmer of the province.